UNBC men get back into the win column

The UNBC Timberwolves kicked off their final weekend of the 2024 U SPORTS Canada West men’s soccer season in fine fashion.

Friday night in Kamloops, the TWolves were full marks in 1-0 victory over the Thompson Rivers University WolfPack. Hagon Kim supplied a brilliant first-half free kick goal in the 20th minute and Logan Pierce stopped all three shots fired his way to earn the clean sheet.

Isaac Tate scored the only goal of the game in the 20th minute to cinch the second win of the season for UNBC (2-12-2), while TRU dropped to 1-12-2.

It was arguably the most connected and dominant the Timberwolves have been to date and from the jump, Steve Simonson’s club played fast and urgent.

First-year midfielder Mehdi Bounaaja hit a crossbar early in the eighth minute, and then Trevor Scott came close in the ninth minute, but Olivier Jumeau came up big in the TRU goal for his first save.

After more zone time and pressure, the TWolves were rewarded in the 20th minute and Isaac Tate got it started with his speed. The leading scorer for the Green and Gold was tackled by Aren Christianson outside the penalty area, drawing a foul and setting up a free kick for Hagon Kim.

Kim, who spent his summer playing soccer in Kamloops for Rivers FC, took the free-kick and didn’t miss.

Kim snuck a shot perfectly through the defensive wall and past a diving Jumeau, for his first career Canada West goal.

The TWolves kept the pedal down.

In the 24th minute, Bounaaja placed a wonderful cross into front of the TRU goal from the left wing. Connor Lewis did great work to separate from the defense while staying onside, but just missed tapping home the Bounaaja pass and the score remained 1-0.

Through 31 minutes, the TWolves managed eight shot attempts – three of which were on target. Tate, Colin Stauffer, and Pipeijn van der Ende all had looks at the TRU goal after the 1-0 goal was scored. Through 45 minutes, UNBC held a 10-0 edge in shot attempts and led by one.

UNBC goalkeeper Logan Pierce entered the night with the most saves in the conference, but didn’t have to make his first save Friday until the 50th minute when he swatted away a header attempt from Mikkel Rosenlund. He then caught a break one minute later when Abdel Coulibaly’s header attempt off a TRU corner kick hit cleanly off the crossbar.

Pierce finished the night with three saves and is now five shy of matching former TWolf Daniel Zadravec’s single season Canada West record, and six shy of surpassing it.

The same teams meet in a rematch tonight.

Meanwhile, on the women’s soccer field Friday in Langley, the heavy rain never let up with the arrival of the first atmospheric river of the season, which made for slick turf and the UNBC Timberwolves were unable to put the brakes on their U SPORTS Canada West losing skid.

They fell 5-1 to the Trinity Western Spartans Friday night – their 12th loss in 13 games this season.

Mansha Sindhu, Maddie Melnychuk, Payton Izsak, Emily Watchman and Cailtlyn Cooper were the goalscorers for Trinity Western. The Spartans (second in Pacific Division) improved to 8-3-2 .

T-wolves forward Camryn Cline booted in a rebound in the 24th minute to make it 4-1 game.

UNBC goalie Brityn Hinsche was kept busy in her crease while making eight saves, as she has been often this season. Hinsche came into the game leading Canada West with 109 saves, one up on University of Winnipeg netminder Camille Forbes.

The Spartans outshot the T-wolves 13-4.

The UNBC women, who have lost nine straight, will finish their season Sunday (10:30 a.m.) in Abbotsford against the Fraser Valley Cascades (2-9-2).